Sarah Verbiest

Sarah Verbiest is a Clinical Associate Professor and the Director of the Jordan Institute for Families at the UNC School of Social Work. She is also the Executive Director of the Center for Maternal & Infant Health in the UNC School of Medicine. In addition to teaching courses on health equity and policy, Dr. Verbiest directs several programs addressing the needs of women, pregnant women, new mothers and their infants – including preconception health, tobacco cessation, recurring preterm birth prevention with 17P and postpartum health and wellness. She is nationally known for her work on preconception and postpartum health. She is the Principal Investigator for a HRSA MCHB (Maternal Child Health Branch) Cooperative Agreement for the Collaboration Innovation and Implementation Network on Reducing Infant Mortality, focusing on improving the health of women before pregnancy. She is a Co-Principle investigator for a just announced 5-year project also from the MCHB to provide technical assistance to states on improving maternal health. Her book – Moving Life Course Theory into Action –includes a focus on sensitive periods of human development, including the postpartum period. She has more than 20 years of experience in maternal and infant health and is a mom, a professor, a writer, a researcher, and an advocate for women and all they deserve to have in life. Dr. Verbiest earned her Masters in Social Work, Masters in Public Health (Maternal and Child Health) and Doctorate in Public Health (Leadership) from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.